In the National Women’s Soccer League, momentum is rarely announced loudly.
More often, it comes together quietly, almost imperceptibly, in the offseason, training sessions and roster decisions that only become apparent months later. One player returns healthy. A young striker finds confidence in front of goal. The coach finally has time to mold the team the way he wants.
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Sometimes, when the season starts, the transformation has already begun.
Now, as the opening weekend of the 2026 season approaches, that possibility is starting to swirl around Angel City Football Club.
Since joining the league in 2022, Angel City’s development trajectory has not been smooth. The club made the playoffs at one point and finished fifth in 2023, but fell down the rankings in the following seasons. For a franchise that has quickly become one of the most high-profile programs in women’s soccer — combining Hollywood investment, record attendance and a community impact model — on-field breakthrough remains elusive.
During a preseason media call previewing the upcoming season, former U.S. national team players and analysts Ari Krieger and Lori Lindsay both find themselves back in the Los Angeles club as one of the teams to watch this year.
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Krieger put it bluntly. “Los Angeles could be a surprise team for me.”
In a league characterized by closeness and sudden turns of fortune, this observation carries important implications. The NWSL has long prided itself on competitive balance, where the difference between contenders and challengers can be measured by a handful of results over a long season.
Since Angel City joined the league in 2022, it’s often felt like the club was circling the next step but not quite there yet.
Ambition was never questioned. There is no visibility for either. Few women’s soccer teams have entered the sport with the cultural clout that Angel City has fostered in Los Angeles — a club built around community, storytelling, and a fan base that embraced the program from its first game.
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But football, as always, is closely linked to what happens on the pitch.
“They’re ready for anything,” Krieger said. “They do have quality. But they’re just missing that last piece that could solidify them into the playoffs.”
That missing piece might not be a player at all.
Maybe it’s just a matter of time.
For the first time since taking over, head coach Alex Strauss enters the season with the luxury that every manager hopes for but is rarely afforded in modern football: a full pre-season, a stable squad and the chance to shape the squad without the turmoil that often characterized the club’s early years.
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Strauss repeatedly emphasized that long-term progress comes more from establishing a clear identity than chasing results.
“If you focus on the outcome, you forget about the journey,” he said this week. “If you perform right, the results will fall into place.”
If Krieger’s comments touched on continuity, Lindsay focused on the roster itself.
“I think Angel City is the most complete team we’ve seen since the organization started,” Lindsay said.
Integrity, in this case, doesn’t necessarily mean just star power. Rather, it reflects a team that is more balanced on the field than in previous seasons.
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Midfield additions such as Ali Borges and the creative Hina Sugita have added composure and attacking imagination. Jun Endo’s return from injury is expected to restore one of the team’s most dynamic offensive threats.
Defensively, players like Emily Sams and Savi King provide depth that allows Strauss to adjust his approach based on the game.
“It gives them the flexibility to play with a back three,” Lindsay explained. “You can have Emily Sams, Sarah Gordon and Savi King. You can also have Gisele Thompson. There’s room to move and wiggle depending on how you want it arranged.”
That kind of flexibility is important for a league with long travel schedules during the season, few international call-ups, and schedules that rarely slow down.
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But perhaps the most interesting element of the Angel City roster remains its youth.
The NWSL is increasingly becoming a stage for young American players to quickly express themselves, and Angel City has many talents who are about to enter the next stage of their careers.
Guard Gisele Thompson spoke about that evolution during team media availability this week, reflecting on how the turmoil of last season — roster changes, injuries and a new coaching staff — forced the team to quickly grow together.
“I feel like our team has changed a lot,” Thompson said. “There’s a lot of people leaving and a lot of people coming in. But learning how to get through it and sticking together and supporting each other through the process is the most important thing.”
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Early in Thompson’s career, she’s shown the speed and instincts to unnerve defenders. Lindsay said another year of experience could allow players like her to adjust more naturally to the rhythm of the league.
“Riley]Tiernan has had another year,” Lindsay said. “The second season can be challenging but with the help of the players around her she can stay in the box and really dominate around the goal.”
Within the locker room, that belief appears to be growing, too.
After missing the playoffs last season, Thompson said the team is approaching the new season with a clearer sense of purpose.
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“I think this year we really focused on ourselves and finding our process,” she said. “The way we’re playing right now, I definitely see us getting into the playoffs and going far.”
All of this unfolds within the broader context of an evolving alliance.
Krieger described the NWSL as the most competitive league in women’s soccer, where the gap between the top and middle of the table can quickly close.
“I think we’re the closest league in women’s soccer,” she said.
That kind of parity means a lot for a team like Angel City.
Breakthroughs rarely require revolutions. Usually it comes from smaller shifts — a healthier roster, a system starting to settle, young players finding a rhythm in pro football.
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These parts don’t require major changes.
They just need to be in place.
For the City of Angeles, signs of that possibility are already starting to emerge. A more in-depth list. Under Strauss the identity became clearer. The players regain their fitness. Young talent enters the next stage of development.
Taken individually, none of these factors guarantees success.
Together they started coming up with some different suggestions.
A team that may no longer be biding its time.
But it may eventually get closer.
